Committees
Resource Advisory Committee
View of the Upper Swauk project area from the Swuak Forest Discovery Trailhead, May 2024.
Resource Advisory Committees (RACs) were established under Section 205 of the Secure Rural Schools and Community Self Determination Act of 2000. RACs consist of 15 members representing a wide array of interests.
The committees’ duties include reviewing proposed forest management projects in accordance with the Act and making recommendations on those projects to the Forest Service, coordinating with land management agency officials, and providing opportunities for interested parties to participate in the project development process. Committee members are committed to working collaboratively with other interests for the long-term benefit of national forest system lands.
How does the RAC operate?
The committee typically meets to consider funding projects that meet the legislative intent of economically healthy communities and healthy, sustainable public lands. The meetings are announced in the Federal Register and the local newspapers and are open to the public.
How are members appointed?
Fifteen citizens are appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture to serve four-year terms. Membership is voluntary but mileage for travel can be reimbursed.
Citizens apply using the AD-755 form. The form needs to be filled out in its entirety, as applicable. Instructions for filling out the form are available on the Okanogan-Wenatchee RAC site.
Although RAC members serve four-year terms, the local RAC Coordinator is outreaching for new members on a continuous basis. The goal of the coordinator is to keep a whole and functioning committee in place, and to continually spread the word about the RAC and activities of the committee. Continuous outreach and community involvement is vital for the success and continuity of the program.
How are RAC funds used?
Funds may be used for projects on National Forests or adjoining private land to provide benefits to National Forest resources. The committee has funded projects such as culvert replacement to enhance fish passage, a fuel reduction projects to protect communities from wildland fire, and several countywide weed control programs. At least 50% of funding must be road maintenance/obliteration or watershed improvement/restoration projects.
What are the duties of RAC members?
The committees’ duties include reviewing proposed forest management projects in accordance with the Act and making recommendations to the Forest Service. Committee members are committed to working collaboratively with other interests for the long-term benefit of national forest system lands.
Committee members serve a four-year term without compensation, but may be reimbursed for travel and per diem expenses. Meetings are generally held quarterly at locations within the geographic area the RAC serves. Members must reside within the State in which the RAC is located, and to the extent practicable, within the RAC boundary. Prospective members are advised that membership on a RAC calls for a substantial commitment of time and energy.
These committees are balanced and diverse with equal representation from industry, environmental groups, elected officials, and local people. Specifically, the composition of each RAC is balanced according to the following three interest categories identified in Public Law 106-393:
Category One: (five regular members) who represent one or more of the following interests:
- Organized labor
- Developed outdoor recreation, off-highway vehicle users, or commercial recreation
- Energy and mineral development
- Commercial timber industry
- Federal grazing permit holders or land use permit holders within the RAC area
Category Two: (five regular members) who represent one or more of the following interests):
- Nationally recognized environmental organizations
- Regionally or locally recognized environmental organizations
- Dispersed recreation activities
- Archaeological and historical interests
- Nationally or regionally recognized wild horse or burro groups
Category Three: (five regular members) who represent one or more of the following interests):
- State-elected office holders or their designee
- County or local elected office holders
- American Indian tribal representatives from tribes within or adjacent to RAC areas
- School officials or teachers
- Citizens representing the affected public at large
For status of meetings, information on how to become a member of the RAC, or other questions, please contact RAC Coordinator Robin DeMario by phone at 509-664-9292 or via email at robin.demario@usda.gov
The purpose of RAC meetings is to hear from Title II project proponents and discuss project proposals, make funding recommendations on Title II projects, approve prior meeting minutes, and schedule the next meeting.
The categories/list of interests RAC members represent are:
- Organized labor
- Developed outdoor recreation, off-highway vehicle users, or commercial recreation
- Energy and mineral development
- Commercial timber industry
- Federal grazing permit holders or land use permit holders within the RAC area
- Nationally recognized environmental organizations
- Regionally or locally recognized environmental organizations
- Dispersed recreation activities
- Archaeological and historical interests
- Nationally or regionally recognized wild horse or burro groups
- State-elected office holders or their designee
- County or local elected office holders
- American Indian tribal representatives from tribes within or adjacent to RAC areas
- School officials or teachers
- Citizens representing the affected public at large
National Resource Advisory Committee
The Secure Rural Schools program provides critical funding for schools, roads, and other municipal services to more than 700 counties across the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
Counties typically receive 20% or less of Secure Rural Schools funds under Title II, which are used by willing Federal agencies, State and local governments, private and nonprofit entities, and landowners for protection, restoration and enhancement of fish and wildlife habitat, and other natural resource objectives on Federal land and on non-Federal land where projects would benefit these resources on Federal land.
Rather than being distributed to the State, Title II funds are retained by the Forest Service and are allocated to specific projects that have been reviewed and recommended by a local Resource Advisory Committee.